See Getting Their Attention
Marva Collins died last week, and after learning more about her, I can see that she had mastered the art of capturing her students' attention. Although she began her career before the advent of Whole Brain Teaching, I can see some intersections between her methods and WBT.
For one thing, her classroom did not have a teacher's desk. She stayed on her feet and perpetually engaged her students for the whole day.
In addition, she gave what may have amounted to the only positive feedback in the experience of her students. She made them look her in the eye as she praised them and told them not only that she loved them, but also how smart they were.
She even turned praise into a teaching opportunity by commending her students in Latin, Italian or German. This, no doubt, added the element of fun to learning.
Most of all, she captured the class's attention by believing in them and expecting great things from them.
While Mrs. Collins taught classics and did not seem to approach subjects in terms of a Biblical world-and-life-view, the Christian teacher may profit from studying her methods and asking, "What did she do that conforms to the Bible's approach to making disciples?"
In 1995, CBS's 60 Minutes did a segment on Marva Collins, and examined the impressive results she achieved. You may watch it in two parts, below. To see a movie based on her early career, go here.
Marva Collins died last week, and after learning more about her, I can see that she had mastered the art of capturing her students' attention. Although she began her career before the advent of Whole Brain Teaching, I can see some intersections between her methods and WBT.
For one thing, her classroom did not have a teacher's desk. She stayed on her feet and perpetually engaged her students for the whole day.
In addition, she gave what may have amounted to the only positive feedback in the experience of her students. She made them look her in the eye as she praised them and told them not only that she loved them, but also how smart they were.
She even turned praise into a teaching opportunity by commending her students in Latin, Italian or German. This, no doubt, added the element of fun to learning.
Most of all, she captured the class's attention by believing in them and expecting great things from them.
While Mrs. Collins taught classics and did not seem to approach subjects in terms of a Biblical world-and-life-view, the Christian teacher may profit from studying her methods and asking, "What did she do that conforms to the Bible's approach to making disciples?"
In 1995, CBS's 60 Minutes did a segment on Marva Collins, and examined the impressive results she achieved. You may watch it in two parts, below. To see a movie based on her early career, go here.
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